He's a Natural
by SinningBySilence
Summary: Regina enjoys Henry's riding lessons with Daniel almost as much as he does. From the Tumblr prompt—"AU, Storybrooke, Regina and Daniel share their passion for horseback riding with Henry" STABLE QUEEN - *One Shot*


**_To any of my Castle readers who may have clicked on this-especially if you're reading my Caskett angst fic...PLEASE don't hurt me. I know it's been a while, and I'm working on it, but I've been having SO many Once feels lately it isn't funny._**

**_Anyway..._**

**_So, I'm pretty new to __Once _fanfic (until now, I've pretty much been all about _Castle_). So, please be nice and constructive in your reviews. **

**_Still, I've fallen in love with Regina and Daniel as a couple—despite how hard that ship sank—and couldn't resist writing some fic for them. Sadly, this will never happen, but…well, just thank the lovely anon who dropped this prompt in my Tumblr ask. =) And it's FLUFFY—shameless fluff. You have been warned. Also, this is AU, so we'll pretend that Daniel was somehow never dead in the first place. Okay? Great!_**

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"Mom, watch this!" Henry called.

Regina, who had just emerged from the stables, looked round at her son. Out in the grassy, rolling pasture, he sat up straight on Brandy, the white appaloosa he'd practically adopted as his own. She had quickly become his favorite horse the day Regina first brought him to the Storybrooke Stables.

The boy set the horse at a trot and quickly picked up speed, guiding the horse to the small obstacle course across the field. Regina sucked in a breath and tensed as she watched Brandy gallop toward the first jump.

If her son fell off...

"Oh, God," she murmured, then called out to him, "Be careful!"

Daniel, who stood only a few yards watching Henry and the horse as well, took notice to her nerves. He held out his hand in a calming gesture.

"It's okay," he assured her, coming to stand next to her. "Just watch. I taught him myself."

To her relief, her love was right. Henry kept the perfect posture, leaning forward as Brandy soared over hurdle and raced toward the next. She smiled then, watching her son guide the horse like an expert around the course.

"Doing great, buddy!" Daniel called out to him before turning to Regina. "He's a natural."

Regina nodded, smiling at him as she took his hand and gave it a light squeeze. "You taught him," she said simply.

He chuckled, sliding his arm around her waist to pull her closer and pressing a kiss to her temple. She couldn't help but melt into him. This was perfect, all of it—to finally have both Daniel and Henry back and see them getting along so well. Not even Snow White or Emma Swan could possibly ruin this.

"What?" Daniel asked. She must have been staring at him or grinning like a fool.

"Nothing," she stated, shaking her head. "I just love you—and the fact that you seem to care so much about my son."

"He's a brilliant kid, Regina," he replied earnestly. "And I love you, too. That's why I care so much."

She turned to face him, wrapping both arms around his neck as both of his circled her waist. "That means a lot, you know."

He brought one hand affectionately up to her cheek and, instead of saying anything else, brought his lips to hers sweetly. They both melted into the kiss, getting lost in one another and forgetting that they weren't alone until a voice interrupted their moment.

"I know you're in love and all," Henry said to them from atop the horse as he drew closer, "but there _is_ a kid present."

They both looked up at him laughed, ending their embrace and turning their attention back to him.

"Sorry, buddy," Daniel said walking over to help Henry down from the horse. "We just got a little carried away."

"Just wait until you start dating," Regina chimed in, "then you'll understand."

Henry only shrugged at that, prompting is mother to shake her head. He was only eleven; there was still a little time before those girls his age would start getting to him. Until then, he was her little boy who would continue to wrinkle his nose at the sight of even the slightest romantic affection.

"So, what did you think of my riding?" Henry asked excitedly, changing the subject. "Wasn't that _awesome_?"

Regina placed a hand around his shoulders and said, "You did wonderfully, dear."

"You've definitely got it in you," Daniel added. "If we keep up with these lessons, you can be a real pro."

Henry and Regina followed him as he took the horse's reins and began to lead her back to the stable.

"Oh, that reminds me," the boy said. "Do you think I could bring Emma to my next lesson? I wanna show her what I've learned, too."

Regina groaned internally but opted to bite her tongue. She was making an effort to get along with the outspoken sheriff, and making rash comments in front of her son wasn't going to help that at all. Instead she reached for Daniel's free hand, immediately relaxing at his touch.

"I don't see why not," he shrugged. "Does she like horses?"

"I think so."

"Then bring her along," Daniel said then turned to Regina. "Are you okay with that?"

She sighed, unable to suppress the eye-roll that went with it, before nodding. "I suppose Miss Swan can join us."

She looked up then, meeting Daniel's eye. His subtle grin and soft eyes were almost proud as he looked at her. They exchanged a silent agreement then; inviting Emma was good, it meant progress.

As they stopped just outside the entrance to the stable, Daniel said, "Hey, Henry, would you mind taking Brandy in for me? I'll be there in a minute."

"No problem," the boy replied, taking the reins and guiding the horse inside as asked.

With Henry preoccupied, Daniel turned to Regina and pulled her into a tight embrace, kissing her slowly and deeply. Although taken by surprise, she returned the kiss just as passionately. After a few moments, they broke away slightly to come up for air.

"What was that for?" Regina breathed.

"For finding your way back to yourself," Daniel replied smoothly. "Because _that _is what means a lot to _me._"

* * *

_Thoughts? Feel free to be 100% honest with me-I love constructive criticism._

_Much love, dearies! =)_


End file.
